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Just another WordPress siteThu, 17 Nov 2016 22:19:08 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.4.5Clancy clocks inhttp://tucollegian.org/clancy-clocks-in/
http://tucollegian.org/clancy-clocks-in/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:40:46 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3525Dr. Gerard Clancy is familiar with the ornate desk, smooth wooden floors, and sturdy bookshelves of a university president’s office — he held such an office for eight years at OU-Tulsa. Now, he settles into a very similar office — one with a view of Chapman Commons.

Clancy assumed the presidency on November 1, two months ahead of schedule. Former president Steadman Upham had been slated to retire at the start of the new year.

Many have been curious as to why Clancy assumed early, which the president calls “a natural question.”

“I was named to be the next president in May, and the plan was over the next few months I’d get trained in the job,” Clancy explains. “As we got closer to January, as I was being trained, people started coming to me for the long-term decisions anyhow….It became clear that it was good for me to assume early. I’d been a president at OU-Tulsa for eight years, so I knew the job pretty well.”

This isn’t Clancy’s first time around the block.

According to his bio on TU’s website, he “more than doubled the number of education programs, student enrollment, patient care visits, employees, campus facility square footage and campus annual budget to more than $150,000,000” and “was able to fully fund and build seven new education and clinical buildings and build a significant reserve fund for the campus,” during his tenure at OU-Tulsa.

He intends to continue building upon former president Upham’s legacy.

“TU is on a trajectory [where] we’ve built a beautiful campus, and now it’s my job to fill it up with programs and people and students,” Clancy says.

Clancy’s priorities for TU are varied but targeted.

They include a focus on campus safety, diversity, student accommodations and support, resources for first-generation college students, resources for veterans, increasing internship opportunities and affordability.

The president acknowledges that there may be some setbacks along the way in achieving these goals, particularly in light of TU’s recent budget cuts.

Clancy attributes the budget cuts to disparities in TU’s income, which he says has four main components: tuition, endowment (scholarships or endowed chairs), research grants and gifts.

“This is a school that goes up and down enrollment-wise like the energy industry does,” he says. “We’re in a three-year lag now with the energy industry and we’re in a three-year lag with enrollment.”

He concludes, “When any one of [the four components] is lagging a little bit, the university struggles a little bit.

Endowment is down a little bit, enrollment is down a little bit … I think everyone’s realized that we’ve had to make some cutbacks.”

These cutbacks have mostly included changing the hours of on-campus services, such as shuttles, limiting janitorial services for offices, and most notably, the suspension of retirement benefits for all university employees.

Clancy emphasizes that the main priority in the university’s decision-making process was to avoid hurting the student learning experience.

“We needed to move relatively quickly, and so what we did was we suspended the retirement benefit until we could get caught up,” he says.

“The plan going forward is to adjust the budget as much as we can to try and bring back the retirement benefit as soon as we can.”
The president intends to move forward not by making more cuts, but by “growing the pieces we need to grow.”

He sees diversifying TU’s programs as one of the main priorities for resolving the budget crisis, as this will prevent the university from being too dependent on a single department(such as energy) and will help boost enrollment.

Efforts to do so are already underway with the addition of newly accredited Health Sciences programs, as well as partnerships with local high schools, concurrent enrollment and outreach in cities such as St. Louis and Houston.

Clancy also intends to increase internship options for students, both to increase enrollment and to provide students with as many opportunities as possible to prepare themselves for life after college. Recently, he’s reached out to Microsoft to discuss internship options, and made a trip to China to discuss exchanges and joint partnerships.

As president, Clancy plans to get involved on campus as much as possible. “I expect people to see me around. I walk around a lot, and so please stop and say hi to me, I like that. I go and see the band at the football games…I want to be with students.”

This includes involvement with student associations. Clancy was active duty for six year and a reservist in the Air Force for another 20, and plans to work with the Student Veteran Association to make sure people know that veterans are “very welcome” at TU. “It’s important to me,” he emphasizes.

He also intends to boost service outreach. “At TU I want to be known for more than just volunteering,” he enthuses.

“I want our students to be known for knowing the communities and the projects that they’re in, and doing things at a deeper level than just putting in some service hours.”

Clancy notes that many campus efforts, such as the True Blue Neighbors Behavioral Health Clinic, Reading Partners, Joe’s Garage, the Little Light House and the Boesche Law Clinic already achieve this, but it’s an effort he intends to expand upon.

He becomes visibly impassioned as he talks about the service efforts TU has conducted so far, praising TU students’ ability to get out and get involved. “We’ve got a great story to tell at TU.

I think it’s three overlapping circles, the first being we do a great job in the classroom, the second is we do a great job introducing students to what the world is like in complex environments like True Blue Neighbors and the Global Scholars, but we really succeed in that our students, earlier than most students and to a greater depth than most students, actually go out and do things.”

“That’s Little Light House projects, that’s Made at TU, that’s Ad Program, that’s Third Floor Design, that’s Studio Blue, that’s what The Collegian does — you’re actually doing more than can happen at other universities where students are kinda passive and sitting back. So that’s the story I wanna tell, that when you come to TU you actually get to DO more.”

On a more serious note, Clancy notes that campus safety needs to be a priority for the university moving forward, especially in the light of the arrest and suspension of TU student Alberto Luis Molina for a number of crimes including burglary and sexual battery. He intends to promote a climate of cooperation and safety, and notes that “even within some of our most recent cases there’s some successes of communication is getting better, and people are talking. Clearly it’s very on the minds of the students.”

From his successful tenure at OU-Tulsa, Clancy brings the ability to work through long term problems. “Sometimes these things take time. To get things done at a big complex organization like this you have to have a long horizon, but the key factor for leadership for me is execution,” he says.

“It’s pretty easy to come up with ideas and pretty easy to actually put together a plan. It’s DOING the plan that’s the hard part.”

“I’m kind of a high-energy person and part of that is just pushing through when things are hard,” he explains.

He also intends to bring experience from his work in psychiatry to the president’s office. Clancy has a long and successful career in psychiatry, beginning with a degree in Biochemistry from the University of Iowa. He continues to work at the Laureate Institute for Brain Research and continues to see psychiatric patients.

“In my job [as a psychiatrist], part of what is helpful is I know people,” he elaborates. “So I know when people are upset, I know a little bit about understanding people’s motives and incentives. But probably the most important thing I do as a psychiatrist … is bring hope back into the equation. It’s kind of a tough time for TU right now and my job is to say that things can get better.

“To have hope, you have to be able to show a pathway,” Clancy concludes. “You can’t have hope without a pathway. You can’t fake it. And so part of my job is to put together the path for our university, for our programs, to say that we’ll get through this.”

]]>http://tucollegian.org/clancy-clocks-in/feed/0Over 150 gather to protest president-elect in Tulsahttp://tucollegian.org/over-150-gather-to-protest-president-elect-in-tulsa/
http://tucollegian.org/over-150-gather-to-protest-president-elect-in-tulsa/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:38:08 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3523On Friday, November 11, a protest named “We Are Better Together” was held in downtown Tulsa. The march, which began at the Center of the Universe, covered nearly five miles, bringing the crowd through the Blue Dome District to the BOK Center and, of course, back to the Center. The message of the event was broad in that it was meant to be a promotion of tolerance, love and acceptance; it was particular in its anti-Trump sentiment.

There are some discrepancies amongst local media outlets regarding the size of the protest. The Tulsa World claims the crowd was somewhere around 100-strong, but the Facebook page shows over 150 participants in the event as having attended, and a few pictures help capture this impressive scale.

No matter its size, the protesters made their message clear. Signs carried high above heads could read “Love Trumps Hate” on one side, and “This Pussy Grabs Back” on the other. “Not My President” was a popular message for the poster boards, but some preferred humor, such as, “If America had no immigrants, Trump wouldn’t have any wives.” Some sign-bearers showed solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, others reinforced pro-choice ideals. Many of the signs, including an abundance of rainbow flags, supported the LGBTQ+ community, to which many of the event’s young organizers belonged.

The chants also addressed this variety of contentious topics. “Her Body, Her Choice” was emanated by the marchers as often as “Black Lives Matter,” and not many who had raised their voices for one hesitated for the other. Still, the duality of the event meant that when they weren’t promoting equality, protesters were voicing their disdain for Trump. “We Reject the President-Elect” was one popular phrase of the evening, while later on chant-leaders switched it up with, “Hey ho, Donald Trump has got to go!”

When the crowd wasn’t cheering they were often talking to each other, with many exchanging names, brief histories and their reaction to Trump’s election to the Executive office. While many of the protesters were college students, others had either long since graduated or were significantly younger. Alongside a handful of University of Tulsa students were a few members of TU faculty.

This protest made efforts to keep its rebellion within the realm of legality. The event was originally slated to begin on the Guthrie Green, but due to its privately-owned status was rescheduled for the Center. Outside of a few momentarily blocked streets in Brady Arts (the size of the crowd and its wish to stay together made this inevitable) the protesters performed no illegal action.

This doesn’t mean it didn’t occasionally attract opposition. One woman leaning out of a bar with her head over the crowd jeered incessantly at its members to “get a job.” When one man stopped to contest her by referring to his multiple jobs, someone else responded excitedly that he was “living the American Dream.” Another heckler came in the form of an irate stranger, who asked if protesters thought walking would change anything. “That’s what you’re out here doing right now?” he cried. “This is what you’re fighting?” Still others mockingly tailed the crowd, a few conjuring up no better argument than to produce gagging noises while taking pictures.

If any of this phased the protesters, they showed no sign. After about an hour and a half the march had looped participants back to the Center of the Universe, where the organizers made a few statements, despite the exhaustion evident in their hoarse voices.

“Look to your left; look to your right,” instructed a self-identified 21 year-old gay man. “These are your fellow brothers and sisters in America. We shall not hate!” To the crowd’s cheers he continued, saying, “We are tired of bigotry, we are tired of being hated for something we were born with!”

Before the group dispersed, it made a final trip to Club Majestic, “to show them how much we love them!” Outside a few organizers, many of whom were under 20 years old, posed with their posters and agreed to an interview by a young woman in a hijab. When asked why, in their opinion, any American had voted for Trump, they hesitated only a moment. “Because they have hate in their hearts,” one finally said. “Anyone who voted for Trump voted for hate.”

State question 776 declares the death penalty constitutional in Oklahoma and allows the legislature to use any execution method not prohibited by the US Constitution. The passage of this question changes very little about how the state currently operates, because the death penalty and legislature’s right to choose the execution method are already well established laws within the state.

Oklahoma statute 21-701.9. already holds that “a person who is convicted of or pleads guilty or nolo contendere to murder in the first degree shall be punished by death, by imprisonment for life without parole or by imprisonment for life,” and “a person who is convicted of or pleads guilty or nolo contendere to murder in the second degree shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment in a state penal institution for not less than ten years nor more than life.”

In effect, the passage of SQ776 reaffirms that the state has a right to continue doing what they have been doing.

SQ777 – 60 percent voted no

State question 777 would have prevented lawmakers from passing legislation to regulate broad farming and ranching practices unless there is a compelling state interest. Because this vote failed, legislation about farming practices will continue to be considered on a case-by-case basis.

In order to see the current laws about farming and related practices, the simplest place to go would be the website of the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture. http://www.oda.state.ok.us/ogc/laws.htm

SQ779 – 59 percent voted no

State question 779 would have enshrined language into the state constitution that permanently increased the state sales tax by 1 percent. The money collected through the tax would have been allocated so that 69.5 percent would have gone to common education in the form of an increase in teacher pay of $5,000 per person and to “otherwise address and prevent teacher and certified instructional staff shortages,” 19.25 percent to higher education, 8 percent to early childhood education and 3.25 percent to career tech.

Because this vote failed, there will be no constitutionally protected funds for public education and education legislation will continue to be decided upon by state legislators as it was before.

SQ780 – 58 percent voted yes

State question 780 reclassifies some current felony drug possession and property crimes as misdemeanors.

Previously, possession of illegal drugs was a felony according to state law. Now drug possession will be classified as a misdemeanor. Drug manufacturing, trafficking and selling are still felony offenses. The referendum does not specifically discriminate between illegal drugs for which the law applies.

Previously, a theft or forgery of property worth over $500 dollars was considered a felony offense by state law. State Question 780 raised that threshold to $1,000 dollars. This aspect of the law is not new considering that House Bill 2751, which took effect on November 1, 2016, increased the property threshold for felony prosecution from $500 to $1,000. This new property value amount for felony prosecution applies to crimes including embezzlement, bogus checks, fraud, forged instruments, and grand larceny. SQ780 added false declaration of a pawn ticket, receiving or concealing stolen property and taking domesticated fish or game to that list.

It is important to note that a misdemeanor charge can still result in a significant fine and jail time up to one year. SQ780 will take effect on July 1, 2017 and will only apply to new cases brought before the court.

SQ781 – 56 percent voted yes

State question 781 could only go into effect if voters approved Question 780. SQ781 uses the money saved from SQ780 to fund rehabilitative programs including substance abuse and mental health treatment programs.

Under SQ781, the Office of Management and Enterprise Services will determine each yearhow much money was saved by the state prison system because of changes implemented by SQ780. That amount will be divided proportionally to the population of each county and could be claimed by privately-run rehabilitative organizations that provide drug and mental health treatment, job training and education programs.

SQ781 will also take effect on July 1, 2017. Funds for rehabilitative services will be available after the law is in effect for one year.

SQ790 – 57 percent voted no

State question 790 would have allowed the government to use public money or property for the benefit of a religion or religious institution. This is currently against the state constitution which says in Section II-5, “No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such.”

SQ790 sought to amend this portion of the constitution. The failure of this question would suggest that Oklahomans do not want government money or property to be used for religious purposes.

SQ792 – 66 percent voted yes

State question 792 changed the laws governing alcohol sales and distribution in the state, including provisions allowing grocery stores and convenience stores to sell refrigerated, full-strength beer and wine seven days a week. Restrictions, licenses and taxes associated with the law will be decided on by state legislators. Restrictions and new licensing requirements will be placed on all manufacturers, brewers and wine-makes operating within the state as well as specific licensing for liquor stores, grocery stores and convenience stores.

According to one report by News OK, victory for SQ792 campaign does not ensure Oklahomans will be able to buy wine and full-strength beer in grocery stores due to plans for a lawsuit by The Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma to challenge the constitutionality of the measure.

Bryan Kerr, president of the Retail Liquor Association of Oklahoma, shared his concern that the law holds liquor stores to additional, stricter standards that regulate everything from how many locations they can operate to what percentage of their sales come from nonalcoholic items.

Reportedly smaller wine and spirit distributors have also said SQ792 will render them unable to compete in the marketplace since the measure gives alcohol manufacturers the right to choose one, exclusive distributor in the state.

The measure will go into effect sometime in 2018, although the exact date seems unclear.

Republican candidate Donald Trump was the first to reach 270 electoral votes last Tuesday, managing to take key battleground states like Florida and Ohio despite what many considered a narrow path to victory heading into Election Day. In Oklahoma, president-elect Trump won handily, with 65 percent of votes in the state going to him. Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton received 29 percent of the overall vote and Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson received 6 percent of the vote. According to data from Tulsa World, 85 percent of voting precincts in Oklahoma went to Trump. Tulsa County precinct 33, containing TU, only cast 32.2 percent of its votes for Trump, though it doesn’t specify what percentage went to Clinton and what went to Johnson.

Trump’s election has been met with protest around the nation, including demonstrations in Tulsa (see the article by Trent Gibbons on page 2). Protesters argue that Trump is unfit to serve office and should not be elected on the basis that he lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton. Online, a change.org petition calling for the Electoral College to vote for Hillary Clinton (who won the popular vote by almost 400,000 votes) has garnered over 3 million signatures within three days of Trump’s election. The hashtag #NotMyPresident has also been trending on Twitter and Facebook, reflecting many people’s feeling that the result was undemocratic.

Despite protest and outrage surrounding his election, Trump is looking to the future, having recently released his “100-day action plan to Make America Great Again.” The first section of the plan details his efforts to handle corruption in D.C. This list included term limits for members of Congress, a ban on foreign lobbyists raising money for U.S. elections and a requirement that two existing federal regulations must be eliminated to create one new regulation.

The second section looks at the protection of American workers, including a renegotiation of NAFTA, a withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and cancelling U.S. payments to U.N. climate change programs. The third section is focused on “security and the constitutional rule of law.” Actions within this section include finding a replacement for the late Justice Antonin Scalia, removing over 2 million criminal illegal immigrants and suspending immigration from “terror-prone regions where vetting cannot safely occur.”

US Senator for Oklahoma: James Lankford

Last Tuesday, Republican James Lankford won his first complete term in the US Senate. Lankford received 68 percent of the vote, defeating Democrat Mike Workman, who received 25 percent, Libertarian Robert Murphy and Independent Sean Braddy, who both received three percent, and Independent Mark Beard, who received two percent.

After Senator Tom Coburn stepped down at the end of the 113th Congress in January 2015, Lankford was voted in to serve the last two years of Coburn’s six-year term, leaving the House of Representatives after four years. He is currently on four committees: Appropriations, Homeland Security, Intelligence and Indian Affairs. Lankford’s stances on major issues tend to be standard conservative fare: he has taken a pledge to endorse no new taxes, supports the Patriot Act and feels that federally funded health care is unconstitutional.

US Representatives for Oklahoma

All five of Oklahoma’s Republican representatives retained their positions in last Tuesday’s election. Most of Tulsa and its surrounding towns are in District 1, represented by Jim Bridenstine. Bridenstine, who began in the House in 2013 as a member of the Tea Party, ran unopposed in last week’s election, the only Representative to have that luxury. He is currently on two committees: Armed Forces (Bridenstine is a Navy veteran) and Science, Space and Technology. Much like Lankford, Bridenstine’s stances are fairly standard: he believes that marriage is between a man and a woman, personhood begins at conception and that “the Second Amendment is not negotiable to the people of Oklahoma’s First District.”

]]>http://tucollegian.org/after-months-of-campaigning-election-results-are-finally-in/feed/0Key LGBTQ+ issues identified at PRIDE panelhttp://tucollegian.org/key-lgbtq-issues-identified-at-pride-panel/
http://tucollegian.org/key-lgbtq-issues-identified-at-pride-panel/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:34:03 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3517The university’s Pride Month kickstarted this week with an open panel designed to discuss important LGBTQ+ issues and answer student questions. Dr. Marianne Blair, professor of international and comparative family at TU, Preston Brasch, president of Outlaws at TU Law, Michael Mills, dean of community relations for True Blue Neighbors, and Sharon Queen, representing Oklahoma for Equality Gender Outreach Program, had a lot to say in regard to LGTBQ+ topics both on and off-campus.

When asked about the evolution of LGBTQ+ rights, especially within Oklahoma, Mills responded: “We continue to have laws passed all the time that discriminate against LGBTQ+ people….For every step forward, we take several steps back.” This becomes doubly relevant when one realizes that 27 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were proposed in the Oklahoma House’s last session alone. Queen believes “we really have to get beyond hiding behind the term ‘religious freedom.’” In her mind, the beliefs of one group of people have been proclaimed as more important than those of others, which becomes an enormous problem for the people whose personal identities those beliefs attempt to invalidate. “If Oklahomans can start to speak more on behalf of marginalized citizens, then we can start making progress,” said Brasch. While these bills were all defeated, the panelists are convinced the fact that they were proposed at all shows there is a real problem in the way people and government see those in the LGTBQ+ community. “I don’t need special rights or different rights, just the same rights,” asserted Queen in a sentiment that many in the LGTBQ+ community echo.

On the topic of the university’s recognition of LGTBQ+ students, Blair stated that, while the university has anti-harassment policies to protect students, policies dedicated to gender recognition, and offers some available accommodations, “there is always room to do more and to do better.” Brasch believes a good place to start improving would be in Career Services, arguing that “it’s important to provide students with a network they can connect with and succeed in once they leave.” Mills works to improve university recognition of and relations with LGBTQ+ students all the time not only because it is important, but also because, as he said: “I don’t want our students to feel we are a close-minded campus.”

In the last moments of the panel, the discussion turned to allies. From a student perspective on the campus community in particular, Brasch commented: “The visible support from allies, from an emotional standpoint, has been really nice to see…it gives me a lot of hope for the future.” However, on a wider scale, the need for allies has only increased during the current political atmosphere. It is not good enough to stand in the shadows as a neutral bystander in the face of discrimination. “When you’re in an uncomfortable situation, the most comforting thing to have is a group…maybe not like-minded people, but people willing to walk next to you,” said Queen.

Now more than ever, the LGBTQ+ community needs the support of their fellow people to counter injustice and fight for their human rights. The panel as a whole argued that one cannot be a supporter and be silent, encouraging people to take an active role either as a member of the LGBTQ+ community or as an ally. “Be seen. That’s how you affect change. Be seen. Be willing to stand up,” declared Queen.

At the conclusion of the discussion, Mills remarked: “We’ve got a long way to go. Evenings like this are important.”

]]>http://tucollegian.org/key-lgbtq-issues-identified-at-pride-panel/feed/0TU students question future as teachershttp://tucollegian.org/tu-students-question-future-as-teachers/
http://tucollegian.org/tu-students-question-future-as-teachers/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:32:31 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3515In August 2016, the Oklahoma School Boards Association reported that districts across the state were trying to fill more than 500 vacancies for the 2016-2017 school year. These vacancies came from eliminating 1,500 teachers and 1,300 supporting staff positions. To fill these remaining spots, the state has been forced to rely on emergency certified teachers. This certification can be given to someone with a bachelor’s degree, in any subject, who passes several required tests. In 2015-2016, more than 1,063 certifications were issued by the state, compared to 32 in 2011-2012.

But the state’s ability to fill these positions with graduating education majors may also be slim. Since 2008, enrollment in education training programs has dropped in the state of Oklahoma. In 2008-2009, there were 23,631 enrolled in accredited programs; in 2015-2016 there were 4,6546 enrolled, with 545 enrolled in alternative, non-IHE (institute of higher education) based programs.

This didn’t surprise Phillip Applegate, the Dean of Continuing Education and Lifelong Learning at TU. “I can’t imagine why anyone in their right mind would go into education in Oklahoma these days,” he said. TU has been largely unaffected by the dropping enrollment rates of education majors, hovering from 150 in 2011-2012 to 110 in 2015-2016. Part of this, Applegate suspected, was that many of TU’s education students are from surrounding states, and plan to return to these states when they leave.

Julie Tandy, who currently studies elementary education at TU, agreed, but added that local students who study at TU, like herself, also often leave the state upon graduation. They “have very little to entice them into staying, especially when moving just a state away to Arkansas or Texas could give them a huge raise and a huge boost in school quality.” Those who do stay, she believed, “are doing so to stay near family or because their spouse or significant other has a job that makes more money than teaching that requires them to stay in Oklahoma.”

Of the five students interviewed for this article, all were from Oklahoma, and all but one planned to eventually move to a surrounding state to teach.

Emma Moseley emphasized their struggle, saying “I want to go back [to Owasso] so badly, but I don’t think it’s a smart choice to stay in Oklahoma.” Other former administrators and teachers have told her “as soon as you get your degree, leave … My high school teachers, before I left, were telling me try something else. Not because they don’t think I can do it, just because they know that you get frustrated with the politics of it and not being able to change that.”

Tameka Collins also embodied another struggle, as her husband, another teacher, is from Texas. The one who planned to stay and teach in the state for about ten years, Melissa Buchman, said she hoped to eventually obtain a law degree in education so she could help fix the system.

Collins, a current TU elementary education major, said “it goes back to pay every single time. Obviously money isn’t everything to me or I wouldn’t have chosen to be a teacher in the first place, but I need it to survive.” When she first started her degree, she believed she would stay in state, but has adjusted her plans as a result of the state of teaching and her marriage.

Because of the low salary, Buchman said she’d been told to “marry wealthy” if she wanted to go into teaching. But, she argued, she should be able to support a family on her teaching salary without having to do so.

The major reason for this lack of teachers, according to Applegate, current education majors and reports from current teachers in the public press, is pay. Oklahoma has the lowest teacher salary of the surrounding states, and consistently ranks in the bottom of the nation in teacher salary. This low salary is compounded by the fact many teachers buy supplies for their classroom and students out of their own pockets, according to Tandy.

Another issue detracting from attracting new teachers was respect. Several of those interviewed felt teachers in Oklahoma weren’t respected very much. Tandy said, “for instance, when SQ779 didn’t pass, the comments on the Tulsa World article on Facebook were filled with sentiments of ‘stop whining, you make $x, that’s plenty’ or ‘get another job’.”

“Even though we are working hard and getting that four year degree,” Moseley said that teachers often aren’t respected or paid as professionals. “I have people telling me I’m wasting my talents because I’m going into education,” she added. “I could technically do a lot of other majors, but I want to do this so badly. But it’s almost like, am I an idiot? I could make like double my salary easily, but that would be so boring.”

Several different explanations were offered as to how Oklahoma became so notorious for a poor education system. Most argued parts of the legislature didn’t prioritize education, instead either focusing on other issues of governance or focusing on overly minute details.

“The last couple of legislative sessions, I think we moved into the idea that if we kept cutting taxes dramatically, everyone would flood into Oklahoma and there’d be development. But that came at the price of dramatically reduced public services,” Applegate said. Since 2000, the state government has slashed the state income tax. The top income tax bracket has been cut by almost a fourth, from 6.65 percent before 2004 to five percent in 2016. According to an analysis conducted for Oklahoma Policy Institute by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in January of 2016, the “annual cost of cuts to the top personal income tax rate enacted since 2005 is $1.022 billion”. While the state did initially see robust growth in annual appropriations until about 2009 due to high energy prices, since then the state has seen little growth to a loss in appropriations. “So people are going to have to come up with a better political and economical philosophy to move forward cause this isn’t working very well,” Applegate concluded.

Moseley also pointed to misguided priorities in the legislature. In 2015, the legislature debated banning AP US History, under HB 1380, although ultimately they did not do so. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Dan Fisher, who believed the new AP framework viewed America as “nation of oppressors and exploiters” and shows “what is bad about America.”

“Right now, our issues are teachers making a self-sustained salary where they can actually live a life,” Moseley said. “There’s so many important things and they’re over here debating whether or not we should keep this class.”

She also brought up the debate over Common Core, saying that while the state had decided to not use the system, the standards legislators created were “just about the same” as Common Core. She recalled teachers who used Common Core worksheets, but because of state policy, the teachers cross out the name “Common Core” before they use them in class.

“We spent so much time and energy redoing those guidelines,” she said, with reference to Common Core, but hadn’t focused on other important issues like teacher pay.

Tandy noted oftentimes the teachers don’t seem to factor into legislative decisions. “Major decisions are made without really considering how it will affect teachers. For instance, elementary reading curriculum changed to a program that almost every teacher hates — it’s incredibly scripted and allows for very little creativity on the teacher’s part, and does not connect well with what students are tested on by the state — and the district is not listening to teachers’ concerns about this.” Her argument was echoed by Buchman, who noted that the emphasis on standardized testing, especially tying performance to salary, led to “teaching to the test.”

“Second graders are being taught how to fill in the bubble,” she said, even if they don’t fully understand multiple choice yet.

While Moseley believed “a lot is changing in education, and it’s really bizarre that it’s not one of the main issues of the election,” the results of the election, at both a local and national level, will affect Oklahoma. The failure of SQ 779 is the most obvious example. This question would have resulted in a one percent increase in the state sales tax, and 69.5 percent of that raise would have gone to an increase in teacher pay of $5,000 per person. Other portions went to higher education (19.25 percent), early childhood education (8 percent) and career tech (3.25 percent). Buchman was encouraged by the support for the proposal, saying that awareness of the issue was important for fixing it.

Tandy agreed that there were problems with SQ 779 and that “there would be a better way to adjust teacher pay, but it’s still unfortunate that it was defeated. I don’t know how long Oklahoma teachers are going to have to wait for a ‘better way’ that makes everyone happy, when they so desperately need more.”

Applegate hoped the election would make students “become much more politically and socially aware — that this isn’t the end of the world, that if students disagree with the way the country moves as result of this presidency they’re gonna have to get more involved and more politically active. It could be a good thing.” While Tandy, who described herself as a political moderate who avoids commenting on politics, said Donald Trump’s desire to reduce funding to the department of education has her concerned.
“While I agree that the money in the DoE is not spent wisely on our education system, we desperately need an overhaul of the public education system in order to catch up with other first-world countries who are light-years ahead of us,” she said.

As for the future of teaching and education in Oklahoma, those interviewed had some bleak hope. “I don’t see it changing anytime soon because it’s so down in the hole right now. To get back up where we need to be is gonna take a long time,” said Collins. Applegate recalled a former boss, a state superintendent, who said as she left, “‘we’re gonna burn the barn down before we have a chance to rebuild it’. I think we’re getting very close to that point.”

But all the elementary education majors emphasized that their love for teaching drives them. “People who are in the classroom love the kids, because they’re not getting paid, they’re not getting treated like professionals,” Moseley said. “Oklahoma will eventually come back,” Applegate said. To those who are in the process of becoming or want to become teachers, he said, “My message is just buckle down, work hard and we can move this state back to a functional state. If not, we’ll all just move somewhere else.”

]]>http://tucollegian.org/tu-students-question-future-as-teachers/feed/0Campus Climate Survey reveals student unease about personal safetyhttp://tucollegian.org/campus-climate-survey-reveals-student-unease-about-personal-safety/
http://tucollegian.org/campus-climate-survey-reveals-student-unease-about-personal-safety/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:30:57 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3513The Campus Climate Survey was conducted by the University of Tulsa Institute of Trauma, Adversity and Injustice (TITAN) and the Advocacy Alliance. The stated purpose of the survey was, “to investigate the prevalence rates, attitudes regarding interpersonal violence, knowledge of and access to resources, alcohol and drug consumption, mental health symptoms, and perception of preventative and response efforts by the university.”

The results of the most recent survey were finalized on October 24. Members of TITAN and the Advocacy Alliance have been unavailable for contact to answer further questions about the survey, but some of the survey’s key findings are still noteworthy.

The sample size of the survey was 424 students, approximately nine percent of the total student population. Overall, 9.1 percent of students reported the experience of sexual violence while a student at TU.

Information about the contexts in which students at TU experienced assault was made available. 58.2 percent of perpetrators were also students at the university and 73.8 percent of perpetrators were male. Alcohol use was prevalent with 76.9 percent reported use by the perpetrator an 76.8 percent use by victims. 71.1 percent of sexual assaults reported occurred on campus and of the 31 respondents who listed specific locations, 51.6 percent occurred in campus apartments, 29 percent occurred in fraternity houses and 19.4 percent occurred in dorm rooms.

Respondents who said they had experienced assault were asked to indicate if and to whom they disclosed their assault. 55.3 percent said they had not told anyone about their assault. Others told a roommate or close friend, a family member, a counselor or mental health professional and in only one case to a campus sexual assault advocate.

Of the students who told no one, their reasons for doing so included: being embarrassed and ashamed (52.6 percent), believing it was private matter and prefered to deal with it alone (70 percent), being concerned that others would find out about their assault (31.3 percent), fearing retribution from the perpetrator (14.3 percent), fearing not being believed (31.3 percent), fearing punishment for infractions such as underage drinking (13.3 percent), did not know reporting procedures on campus (14.3 percent), feeling as though nothing would be done (26.7 percent) and not thinking the school would do anything about their report (14.3 percent).

Only two of the students who had experienced assault identified using formal university procedures to report the incident.

Students were also asked about their perceptions of leadership, policies and reporting violence at TU. Despite mandatory training required for all students prior to enrollment, only 72.9 percent of respondents reported receiving training in university policies and procedures. 23.4 percent of students expressed a belief that official were “not at all” or “slightly likely” to take corrective action against an offender; and 20.3 percent believed that officials were “not at all” or “slightly likely” to take corrective action to address the factors that may have led to the sexual assault. 60.6 percent of students felt college administrators should do more to protect students from harm.

Students also expressed attitudes about safety on campus. These included concerns about poor walkability at night, the absence of patrolling campus security officers, lack of safely located parking lots and the public accessibility of campus.

The report highlights, “there has been no reduction in the occurrence [of] sexual violence on the University of Tulsa campus from the 2014-2015 to the 2015-2016 academic year.”

“Our primary hindrance from achieving best practices with regards to sexual violence prevention on TU’s campus is the need to have information centralized and managed on a full time basis through positions dedicated to these efforts,” the report concludes.

]]>http://tucollegian.org/campus-climate-survey-reveals-student-unease-about-personal-safety/feed/0Student encounters difficulty seeking CSAS accommodationshttp://tucollegian.org/student-encounters-difficulty-seeking-csas-accommodations/
http://tucollegian.org/student-encounters-difficulty-seeking-csas-accommodations/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:30:01 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3511When Kaitlyn Counter was diagnosed with ADHD during spring of her sophomore year, it became apparent to her that her condition was affecting her academic performance. She turned to TU’s Center for Student Academic Support, which offers accommodations to students with students with disabilities including ADHD.

“I had just gotten my ADHD diagnosis from my psychiatrist, and I took it to CSAS because everybody talks it up like they’re really going to help you,” Counter said.

“I gave them everything that they needed, I got a letter from my psychiatrist stating the accommodations that I need, what he thinks would help me … he did all of his paperwork that they gave me to give to him. Basically they laid it all out for me and they were like ‘this is what you need,’ and I brought it back to them,” she explained.

Counter’s case was taken to CSAS’ Eligibility Committee. According to the CSAS handbook, the committee “includes staff from CSAS, a trained staff member from the student’s academic college and staff from the counseling center,” and “reviews the documentation and makes determinations about appropriate accommodations,” before notifying the student of the committee’s decision in writing.

“I got an email that was like ‘we are not granting you accommodations … we don’t have sufficient evidence that you’re impaired enough,’” Counter said. She explained that when she asked for elaboration, she was not given a clear reason as to why her ADHD diagnosis from her psychiatrist was not sufficient evidence to grant her accommodations.

The CSAS handbook, which can be accessed on TU’s website, lists the following documents as necessary for acquiring accommodations: “procedures followed, the instruments used to assess the disability, the test results, and the interpretation of the results.” Also required material are “recommended academic accommodations,” “individual’s present achievement level … dated no more than three years prior,” test results for criteria including intelligence, reading rate, and processing skills, and any “additional testing … as determined by the Eligibility Committee.”

“The gist of it was that I did not have enough ADHD to constitute getting time and a half [on exams], which was all that I had asked for. So I’ve been basically battling with them since mid-[spring] semester and then all this semester,” Counter said.

When Counter asked what she needed to do to receive the accommodations, she was told by CSAS officials that she needed to take a 6-8 hour formal assessment with a licensed professional, which included an interview and a series of aptitude tests. The cost of the assessment was $2,000.

“I asked if they had any resources or if they offered that testing — and they didn’t point me in the direction of any places that would offer it, but they said that they could give me the names of some psychiatrists’ offices. And I was like ‘well, I have one of those.’”

Counter was told by her employer that the True Blue Neighbors Behavioral Health clinic offered the assessment she needed for free, so she contacted the clinic. The True Blue Neighbors clinic is TU-affiliated and provides mental health assessment and treatment services to people in areas near TU.

“They made it sound like they could do the test, and they obviously offer it,” she said. “I got a call a week or two later saying they actually wouldn’t do it because they saw that I wanted my results sent to CSAS.” The clinic stated that it would be a “conflict of interest” to provide the results to CSAS, and that CSAS would not accept the results.

“I just don’t even know what to say to that,” Counter said. “Because they have the resources to give students this assessment that they require for ADHD accommodations, and they just don’t allow you to use it, essentially.”

“So here I am, praying that I have professors who are accommodating … I feel so bad,” she continued. “Because I love TU, I love the professors because all of them have been super nice to me and they’ve been really accommodating. But it’s just stuff like this that just doesn’t ever work.”

Counter commented that “it feels like specific discrimination against people with ADHD and learning disabilities because we’re the only two that are listed on their website who have to go through … special guidelines to get accommodations.” She said that she has spoken to students with bipolar disorder and depression who have been offered time and a half on exams by CSAS.

“Why don’t I get that?” she asked. “Why do I need to spend $2000 in order to get my accommodations when this person has what I have, which is a diagnosis from a psychiatrist, and they’re cleared?”

The CSAS handbook states that “In order to qualify for accommodations, students provide documentation of their disability to CSAS. Depending on the type of disability, there is different information that will need to be provided by the student’s diagnosing professional.” Though the handbook does note that a variety of documentation (i.e. different assessments) may be required depending on disability, it doesn’t specify which types of documentation are required for certain disabilities.

“They don’t state it explicitly [in the handbook],” Counter explained. “But I’ve asked them ‘should I have my psych write me another letter,’ or ‘what else can my psych do’ and they said ‘no, you need that testing.’ I was not given any other options.”

The handbook states that “TU is in compliance with requirements under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Students must provide sufficient disability documentation as determined by the 504/ADA Coordinator before services or accommodations will be provided (accommodations cannot be provided retroactively).” It specifies that “It is the student’s responsibility to provide or pay for the cost of this documentation.”

Additionally, the handbook seems to state that service providers cannot be affiliated with the university, potentially explaining the “conflict of interest” cited by True Blue Neighbors: “Documentation must be prepared by appropriately certified personnel qualified to diagnose disabilities including, but not limited to a certified physician, educational diagnostician, learning disability pec list or psychologist. The service providers cannot be associated with the University of Tulsa in a full-time or part-time following documents will be needed: procedures followed, the instruments used to assess the disability, the test results and the interpretation of the results.

So far, Counter has been relying on gracious professors and convenience in scheduling to complete her exams. “I’ve lucked out with my schedule. I have a 9 a.m. and then an 11 a.m. So that gap really helps because … I can come in early, take the exam, like start taking it and then [the professor] will move me to the class and that’s fine.” However, she’s concerned that her schedule might not work out so well in the future. “It basically just depends on how much your schedule matches up with your professor’s.”

The setup also isn’t ideal because it allows Counter to be distracted easily by outside stimuli. With CSAS accommodations, she would be allowed to test in one of CSAS’ private rooms. As it is, “I get to start 20 minutes early, but the tradeoff is I get moved from wherever he has me start to the classroom.”

“There’s almost a certain amount of shame,” she added. “I walk in with my test that I’ve already done. I’ve gotten extra time and it’s apparent. So it’s like, I almost hide my test until people start and then I make it look like it’s been handed to me. Because people get upset about that, they don’t understand why I get special treatment.”

As previously stated, TU is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prevents discrimination on the basis of disability and ensures equal opportunity for those with disabilities. The ADA covers individuals with mental illnesses, which includes ADHD. Though TU “is in compliance with requirements under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act,” according to the CSAS handbook, the university “reserves the right to determine the most effective and timely accommodation(s) after consultation with the student and appropriate health care providers (with the student’s permission) as the 504/ADA Coordinator deems essential.”

Counter doesn’t feel as though she has been treated in a way that is ADA compliant. With the ADA, “the person just needs to show a reasonable amount of disability, or that their work is affected,” she said. “One of the biggest lines in the ADA is that the employer needs to make a reasonable accommodation, unless it is of high cost to the employer. And the employer in this case would be TU, because the section also applies to institutions,” Counter says, referring to Title I of the ADA.

“So while I can see a $2000 test being an unreasonable cost to an institution, there’s also the fact that there’s this clinic that will test me for free or at a lower cost — anything is better than $2000 — they won’t allow me that service, so that’s a lack of accommodation there,” she continued.

“The fact that they require me to have that test in the first place when I have a letter from my psychiatrist saying ‘she especially struggles in this area, this area and this area because of her ADHD,’ seems very unreasonable. Reasonable accommodations are not being made for me. And that to me does not sound ADA compliant,” Counter concluded.

Counter said that the process has added quite a bit of work to her plate. “It feels like such an unnecessary addition to my workload,” she lamented. “I’m taking 16 hours, it’s technically 18 hours because I picked up a lab, and on top of that I’m trying to get paperwork and stuff … It should not be this much work to get accommodations. I know several people at state schools who have absolutely no issues getting accommodations, people with ADHD … That’s a state school, they have so many students to care for and if they’re able to do that at a state school I just don’t understand why it’s such an issue here.”

Looking forward, Counter plans to take her case to TU administration. “Next step is sending a letter to administration, and if that doesn’t go anywhere then … where am I gonna go with it?”

]]>http://tucollegian.org/student-encounters-difficulty-seeking-csas-accommodations/feed/0Tulsa’s flag should not have the city’s seal on ithttp://tucollegian.org/tulsas-flag-should-not-have-the-citys-seal-on-it/
http://tucollegian.org/tulsas-flag-should-not-have-the-citys-seal-on-it/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:27:57 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3509For those who are not familiar with Tulsa’s flag, it consists of the city’s seal over a white background. Such a design is too common in the United States. About half of the state flags consist of a symbol, usually the state seal, over a blue background. The repetition is boring and makes it more difficult to distinguish between different flags.

Considering that being a clear symbol of something is the whole point of a flag, the similarity is a problem. Also, putting a seal on the flag violates some of the basic principles of vexillology, the study of flags.

According to the North American Vexillological Association (NAVA), flags should follow five basic principles: 1) they should be simple enough to draw it from memory, 2) they should have meaningful symbolism, 3) they should only have a few colors, 4) there should be no lettering or seals and 5) they should be distinctive or clearly related (think of the Nordic countries).

The reasons for most of these basic principles are fairly obvious, or at least should be. (Considering how many states use the seal over a blue background, perhaps distinctiveness is not an obvious goal). But anyway, it might not be immediately apparent why seals and writing are such bad things to put on a flag. If a flag is supposed to clearly represent a particular place, writing “City of Tulsa Oklahoma,” which is on the flag as a part of the seal, will make it perfectly clear what the flag is supposed to represent.

A 2004 report from NAVA ranking the flags of 150 American cities explains why seals and writing are bad. The first reason is that “A flag is a graphic symbol, not a verbal display.” Basically, putting letters on a flag entirely defeats the purpose.

As NAVA’s official report on flag design puts it, “one might simply write the name of a country or location on a white sheet and wave it around.” Secondly, “Lettering is nearly impossible to read from a distance, hard to sew, and difficult to reduce to lapel-pin size.”

Think of the flags of the United States, the United Kingdom or France. All of those flags are extremely easy to recognize even at a distance because of their iconic designs. If the words on a flag are all that distinguish it from others, it will be useless at a distance.

There is one other reason NAVA notes for not putting words on a flag. “Words are not reversible.” This means that flag manufacturers are left with two options: they can either make a flag that has one side backwards, or they can make the flag double-sided. The former is obviously not a good choice, and the latter increases the costs of manufacturing.

So how did Tulsa do in NAVA’s ranking, with its seal and white background? It scored 124 out of 150. Now, there is one caveat in that ranking — it was determined through an Internet survey. However, that is not enough reason to disregard the survey. It was posted only on websites for flag enthusiasts, but more importantly, the principles of flag design are based on simple aesthetics. Does one really need to know a lot about vexillology in order to know that the flags of Washington, DC (#1) and St. Louis (#5), which have distinctive and pleasing designs, are superior to the flag of Pocatello (#150), which literally has a copyright notice on the flag itself?

Luckily, there is a campaign starting to get Tulsa’s flag changed so it no longer has the seal on it. According to the Tulsa World, the campaign is being led by two residents named Jacob Johnson and Joey Wignarajah. Part of the reason they’re wanting to change the flag is that Tulsa restricts the use of the city’s seal, so using the flag in memorabilia is legally questionable.

The campaign will be conducted online and with private money. Their website is tulsaflag.com. They plan on taking suggestions through November, designing in December, voting on designs in February and presenting the winner to the City Council in March or April. The public should keep in mind the five principles of flag design while recommending and voting on the new flag.

]]>http://tucollegian.org/tulsas-flag-should-not-have-the-citys-seal-on-it/feed/0TU needs to improve its sexual health resourceshttp://tucollegian.org/tu-needs-to-improve-its-sexual-health-resources/
http://tucollegian.org/tu-needs-to-improve-its-sexual-health-resources/#respondTue, 15 Nov 2016 23:27:12 +0000http://tucollegian.org/?p=3507Trojan (of the condoms) has released a Sexual Health Report Card every year for the past 11 years. They compare the information available about on-campus resources for sexual health at 140 colleges across the United States, which account for one third of undergraduate students in the U.S. The report looks at 11 criteria and ranks colleges in relation to one another.

To do so, they complete an exhaustive internet search, pulling data from anywhere from the schools’ websites to Reddit.

They also send out 2-page questionnaires to each school, which their Student Health Center fills out and sends back to Trojan, along with other goods from their school such as sunglasses or pens.

The research focuses on the quality and quantity of resources available to students, not about the students’ sexual health on a person-by-person basis.

Bert Sperling, lead researcher on this project, emphasized that the point of the report was checking resources “so every student can make their own best choice.”

This year, the University of Tulsa dropped 10 spots, from 109 to 119. Sperling explained the change in rankings and what sets some colleges apart from others. Factors in that included TU’s lack of online resources and other schools’ improvements in education and outreach.

For instance, Sperling noted that TU does have 10 condoms for $1 available at the Alexander Health Center, but that information could only be found on Reddit.

He described a “rising tide of information” on sexual health in universities, and pointed out that TU has simply failed to continue to improve the ease of access to this information in a way that keeps pace with other schools, thus the drop in ranking. In TU’s favor are the university’s “sexual violence prevention” tab on the school’s home page and similar programs, iStand and Red Flag campaigns, and social media efforts, among other factors.

As information is increasingly made available, it’s worthwhile to ask what improvements can be made. This question is exactly what makes Trojan’s Sexual Health Report Card a successful and worthwhile report.

Schools that have exceeded expectations set the curve and, in true college fashion, TU should be ready to learn from them. One phenomenal way to improve the availability of sexual health at TU would be to licence the use of, or at least promote awareness for, the University of Oregon’s app, SexPositive.

Currently, three schools use the app: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Maryland, and the creator, the University of Oregon.

The app opens to a disclaimer screen that reads “By clicking Continue, you agree that you will express and obtain explicit consent from everyone involved before engaging in a sexual act,” before going on to explain the definition of explicit consent and that no personal information is tracked or shared by the app.

Users are shown a wheel where they can choose various acts, and then explore the risks associated and ways to minimize those risks. Users are eased into the app by the opening combination, “when a finger touches a toe.”

An app as a resource promotes anonymity, ensuring the safety and comfort of students. To encourage the university to utilize this app or similar apps, you can contact the Alexander Health Center.

Another easy way to boost not just TU’s ranking in the annual report is to consider columns in the on-campus newspaper. Several schools utilize their health center’s professionals, members of faculty, or even their student staff to foster a safe and informed environment for students.

Columns come in the form of sexual health reminders, relationship advice and anything in between. If this is something that is deeply interesting to you, come to a Collegian meeting and propose the idea or talk to a writer to see what can be done about your questions.

Sexual health is important. You don’t have to put your personal life on display, and the Sexual Health Card certainly isn’t asking you to. But I hope that you and your friends stay safe.

I hope you check out the SexPositive app, and talk to the Alexander Health Center about TU utilizing it. I hope you go to programs put on by the halls on campus that provide contraceptives and information.

I hope you make informed decisions about what you do with your body. And while I think this university does strive to make sure that you have the resources to make those decisions, I also believe that we can do better, that life is about improvement and that you, the student body, deserves the best possible resources when it comes to your health.